Hi,

I own a Accord 1996 EX 2.2L 4 cylinders for 3 years and so far the repair I made on it are by a personal mechanics who charge 30$/hour:
- Front brake pad + disc
- front ball joints
- Brake master cylinder


BUT I just discovered other repairs for my Accord 1996 (240,000 KM) need to be done

Repair 1 (urgent): oil leak in the spark plug , 3 of 4 of my spark plug had oil leak
in them, and 2 of them is pretty bad, the plug is almost swimming in the oil , estimated repair by my mechanics : labor : 30$, parts: 30$ = TOTAL 60$


Repair 2 : brake line are rusted but not leaking. This is a coming repair to be done since it is a important one to do since security is involved.
I dont have the price, but from search on the net, between 400-600$


So my questions are :

Q1 - Keep my car and repair the 2 problems and hope no other main issues with pop up ??

Q2 - Sell this car and buy a new used one ??

Q3 - How hard and difficult to change the 3 set of gasket (spark plug tube seals, lower O-ring , and cylinder head cover ) for someone who never worked on an engine ???

Q4 - How difficult is it it change the brake line as a DIY project ?

Thanks for your input !

 

to change the spark plug seals, you must remove the valve cover and rocker shaft. just a bunch of bolts, nothing too bad, as long as you are careful to not bend any valves when reinstalling the rocker assembly. also replace plug wires and spark plugs, soaked wires lead to misfires.

for the brake line, not too bad but the rust is an annoyance. you will need to purchase a brake line flaring tool also. search a youtube video for a how to. i wouldnt replace the vehicle, but then again, i am a mechanic. 240000 km isnt much for a honda

 

You never specified what motor you have. It makes a huge difference in repair cost whether it is VTEC or not.

 

Information added in my post.

It is a EX 2.2L 4 cylinders

 

Indeed the oring and spark plug gasket, I am not too worry for that, I could try to do it myself since I begin to like to play in the engine !!!


But my concern is the brake lines and the future. 400-600$ is a lot of money and more important for me, what is the next thing to repair !

What are the possible repair that need to be done after 240,000km ?? Timing belt done at 215000km.

 

brake line is under $2 a foot for 3/16 size in the good nickel alloy kind that wont corrode again, if you do it yourself. you could do every line in the car for under $50 yourself.

 

4cam4banger mentioned having to remove the rocker assembly, the F22B1 (VTEC) does not have internal oil seals and the repair is incredibly simple. The F22B2 (non-VTEC) has internal oil seals in the spark plug wells which makes the repair far more difficult because the rocker assembly has to be removed.

Which brake lines need repair? The Accord engine bays are SUPER packed compared to other models, so even something like bending a simple piece of tubing can be difficult in those conditions. I just removed my engine to do all of my brake lines.

 

Nicopp lines are nice.....you have to almost want to screw up the bend to do so. Give me a broom handle and I can bend it in a cirlce in no time......."NZX", where you live you might want to look into this.

So, OP. As stated, the EX is a simple fix for oil in the tubes....again as stated no lower seals so basically you are replacing the valve cover gasket....right tools, ~$20 and a bit of your time.....done.

Back to the brake line, since you talk in "KM" I can assume you are in Canada???? If you don't DIY and pay ~$600....think about this....if the car is paid for......what are payments on "something" else that may or may not have issues vs a car that is paid for and YOU know the history.

At the end of the day....the desicion is yours.....do you just want a new car and can afford the payment....or investing a bit in the one you have ok.

 

I shall! Just call me Levi, that goes for everyone. Considering I don't think I'm going anywhere any time soon.

 

Well "Levi" you can call me almost anything you want......I'm old and don't really care, as I have been called many things.

Stupid, slow, poorman212, scott and a whole bunch that I would not like to post - sorry I try to keep my posts something around nc17 or whatever that rating is....and I leave the flaming to others.

I've "played" with sample Nicopp line - work in the aftermarket - and that stuff is "cool" in my book. I've made line from the old style stuff before - made a mess. Go buy a small piece of Nicopp line and play with it......you'll never go back.

 

LostAgain, you lost me !!!!

NZX said there are also internal seals so the rokerarm assemly need to be removed in order to replace the o-rings.

So basically, there are the valve cover gasket, the spark plug tube seals ans the rockerarm o-rings to change ???



Indeed I am in canada !! thats why my brake lines are in bad shape, salt !!!!
And you are right the repair is still less that paying a new car ! I have to decide 1

Thanks

 

You don't have the spark plug tube seals, just the regular orings that sit just the valve cover so you're lucky. The non-vtec engines have the spark plug tube seals.

This means you don't need to pull your rocker arm assembly.

 

Thanks "holmes".

Yes the EX (=vtec) only have the "upper seals". When you pull the vc and flip it over you'll see them. A "dab" of silicone on the "corner humps" of the vc gasket and done.

 

Okaayyyyyyyyyy...


just to clarify, I mentioned my car is a EX 4 cylinders 2.2L
I should now add , it is a NON-Vtec !


So :
NZXTInerTia said : YES internal seals (under the rocker arm)
LostAgain said : NO internal seals
holmesnmanny said : NO internal seals


I called 2 dealerships, they said EX have internal seals.


I am totally confused

 

94-97 EX US model (F22B1)-Vtec, no internal seals
94-97 DX, LX, SE US Model (F22B2) -non-vtec, internal seals.

From what I am reading from you is that maybe the Canadian version EX was a F22B2...?

How about this, take a picture of your engine and post it OR does your engine say "16 valve" on it with a Honda emblem to the left? If it does you have the F22B2 and it DOES have the internal seals.

 

Yes I am canadian !!

Indeed the valve cover said 16 valves and the spark plug are across the back of the cover

So different EX for US and Canada. That explain the confusion !


I have the lower seals and now I known my engine is a F22B2


I am going to change that myself , it dosent seems to be difficult.
For the brake line, I going to see that later !!



Thanks a lot to all for your input!

 

Yep....sorry missed the "KM". In Canada the EX-R is equal to the US EX.

 

I say dig into it, and get your hands dirty. For $600 you could do stainless lines, and not have to worry about the salt. Even with a top of the line flaring too, you should be under the $600 mark. Don't be afraid to do the oil tube seals, as the F22b2 is a much simpler setup than the F22b1. Just my 2 cents. Hope that this helps.

 

Hi,

Just an update
I finally change the spark plug seals (upper and lower) as well as the valve cover gasket.
I followed the instruction of the ericthecarguy video.
Everything went as shwon on th video but in my case, I really went slowly since this my major work on my car. In total it tooks me 2 hours to do the job.

Really happy, and in total it cost me :

25$ : valve cover gasket, lowr and upper spark plug tube seals
30$ : rent at the self-serve shop since I am leavin in appartment (no garage)

for a total of 55$